Functions, Deficiencies and Solutions of Potassium (K)

Potassium (K) available to plants as the ion K+

Functions of K

1. Unlike N and P, K does not form any vital organic compounds in the plant. However, the presence of K is vital for plant growth because K is known to be an enzyme activator that promotes metabolism.
2. K assists in regulating the plant’s use of water by controlling the opening and closing of leaf stomates, where water is released to cool the plant.
3. In photosynthesis, K has the role of maintaining the balance of electrical charges at the site of ATP production.
4. K promotes the translocation of photosythates (sugars) for plant growth or storage in fruits or roots. • Through its role assisting ATP production, K is involved in protein synthesis.
5. K has been shown to improve disease resistance in plants, improve the size of grains and seeds, and improve the quality of fruits and vegetables.

Deficiencies of K

1. The most common symptom is chlorosis along the edges of leaves (leaf margin scorching). This occurs first in older leaves, because K is very mobile in the plant.
2. Because K is needed in photosynthesis and the synthesis of proteins, plants lacking K will have slow and stunted growth.
3. In some crops, stems are weak and lodging is common if K is deficient.
4. The size of seeds and fruits and the quantity of their production is reduced

Solutions for K

1. Apply required quantity of Manjastra (see my blog again for preparation of mangastra)
2. Apply vermi-compost or any other fish meal and neem cake
3. Enrich compost with Bassilus silicate bio-fertiliser 

Functions, Deficiencies and Solutions for Nitrogen (N)

Nitrogen (N) available to plants as nitrate (NO3 –), and ammonium (NH4 +) ions.

Functions of Nitrogen

1. N is biologically combined with C, H, O, and S to create amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins.
2. Amino acids are used in forming protoplasm, the site for cell division and thus for plant growth and development.
3. Since all plant enzymes are made of proteins, N is needed for all of the enzymatic reactions in a plant.
4. Nitrogen is a major part of the chlorophyll molecule and is therefore necessary for photosynthesis.
5. Nitrogen is a necessary component of several vitamins.
6. Nitrogen improves the quality and quantity of dry matter in leafy vegetables and protein in grain crops. 

Deficiencies of Nitrogen

1. Stunted growth may occur because of reduction in cell division.
2. Pale green to light yellow color (chlorosis) appearing first on older leaves, usually starting at the tips.
3. Depending on the severity of deficiency, the chlorosis could result in the death and/or dropping of the older leaves. This is caused by the translocation of N from the older to the younger tissues.
4. Reduced Nitrogen lowers the protein content of seeds and vegetative parts. In severe cases, flowering is greatly reduced.
5. Nitrogen deficiency causes early maturity in some crops, which results in a significant reduction in yield and quality

Solutions of Nitrogen

1. Once observed deficiency symptoms of Nitrogen in the field, spray Sand Urea (5 gram in one lit of water)
2. Enrich compost with free living nitrogen fixing microbes such as Azotobactor and Azospirillum.
3. Enrich Rhizobium bio-fertiliser for legume crops to fix atmospheric nitrogen
4. Apply such enriched compost every year or once in two year
5. Legume mulching also supports the Nitrogen enrichment
6. Crop Rotation with Legume crops 

Mitigate coffee stem borer with climate resilient systems

Coffee is one among the important commercial crops in Chikmagalur, Kodagu, Chamarajanar and Hassan districts of Karnataka. Many coffee growers had been using hazardous agro-chemicals to control white stem borer, berry borer and leaf rust. White stem borer (WSB) is a big menace in Arabica coffee, especially with Kaveri, S 795, S 6 and S 9 variety. Arabica coffee mainly grows in high elevated regions, and it needs 50 to 60% of tree canopy shade. Arabica know its qualities like acidity, aroma and sweetener.

Bhuvaneswara Bhat, a 55 year old, small coffee grower from Mudigere taluk explained his innovation to mitigate WSB on Arabica coffee. Bhat had been doing grafting Arabica coffee on Robusta root stock and also managing tree canopy with traditional poly-culture systems.

Arabista grafting:

Mr. Bhat developed an Arabista coffee with Arabica scion on Robusta root stock with grafting technique (Arabica scion plant + Robusta root stock =Arabista Coffee). Generally, Robusta coffee has resistance against white stem borer but need less tree canopy. But in Arabica coffee need more trees canopy and prone to WSB attack. In the year 2000, Bhat lost entire Robusta coffee yield due adverse climatic and WSB problems. He doesn’t have alternatives to feed his family, not willing to replace Robusta coffee, and then decided to go for grafting method. In 2001, he tried Arabista grafting method with seven coffee plants, and got succeed in his innovation, and then slowly increased the area of Arabista coffee with grafting techniques.

The April-May is the best season for making Arabista coffee grafting in the main farm. Selection of favourite scion of Arabica coffee variety and then identified Robusta root stock for grafting on the same day. Cut the scion material on day of grafting only, not necessary to cut the scion materials before the grafting like in mango.  He is doing soft wood grafting for making Arabista coffee. In the year 2000, he had 4000 Robusta plants and very few Arabica, but now only 1000 Robusta and remaining 3000+ are Arabista coffee plants. In the year 2017, he harvested 25 bags of parchment coffee from Arabista coffee.   

Traditional tree shade management:

The important agronomy practices to mitigate white stem borer in Arabista coffee production is keeping 50 to 60% multipurpose tree canopy. Bhat, keeping 2-tier good shade with local trees rather than going for silver oak trees, there are very few silver oak trees in his farm but more emphasis on traditional tree species such as Ficus glomerata (Atti), Microcarpa fraxinifolius (Havalige), Jack fruit, Erythrina Indica, Rose wood, Legostromia lanceota (Nandhi), Fish tail palm (Bagani), Terminalia tomentosa (Matti), Terminalia bellarica (Taare), Sapandus emirgintus (Soap nut) and Acrocarpus fraxinifolius (Balanji)

In the lower canopy he maintains Erythrina spp and rest trees managing at upper canopy. Atti, Basuriand Havalige are the best shade tree species for coffee production. These two trees sheds the leaves in the month of June-August and new leaves during summer season, this will regulate the coffee leaf rust in rain season and best shade canopy at summer season, and also attracts lots of birds during fruiting and flowering season.

Moreover, Bhat explained the co-existence of avian and other bio-diversities, this indirectly supports the coffee production sustainably and also mitigate white stem borer economically. The regular pruning of trees is very much needed and does it accordingly with climatic situations especially moisture and temperature.      

EDE consulting service is a non-profit company working with small and marginal coffee farmers across globe to promote sustainable production technologies and also enabling coffee farmers to work on collective marketing. The EDE consulting service collected Arabista coffee for cup testing, reports says there is no qualities of Robusta coffee like harsh, bitter, astringent; it has only Arabica coffee qualities like acidity, aroma and sweetener.

Research institutions and other concern departments should do further validation and field level research on Arabista coffee on quality and others parameters, but MAS Company is now propagating this unique innovation to mitigate climate change challenge for its shareholders.

Box item: 1

The MAS Sustainable Coffee Producer Company Limited (in short, MAS Company) discussing with members on understanding implications of climate change on coffee production; they pointed out with following reasons for Chikmagalur and Hasan districts.      

1.     Sudden reduction in coffee yield due to loss of soil moisture, over atmospheric temperature, un-seasonal rains and heavy wind

2.     Increases in incidence of pest and disease, especially WSB

3.     Increases in Irrigation, Fertiliser and Pesticide cost, especially on blossom and back rain irrigation cost through sprinklers

4.     Gradual fall in quality of coffee bean due to development of pre-mature endo-carp and lack of nutrient uptake by plants.  

Why Malabar Neem or Melia or Hebbevu

WHY MELIA ?

• It has been identified as a fast growing indigenous species.
• This species being a local timber is better suited for industrial use than other exotic / foreign species being presently propagated
• Growing this species can increase the forest cover rapidly which at present is a national priority.
• Large scale availability of plantation timber will save our natural forest and bio diversity which need to be protected.
• This will improve rural Economy and The seeds of this tree can be used for the extraction of a bio pesticide
• The use of this timber as and when available produces a very good quality plywood comparable to international standards

GROWTH HABIT

It is a fairly large, handsome, deciduous tree, attaining a girth of 1.2-1.5m and a height of about 15m, with a spreading crown and a cylindrical, straight bole of about 9m

SITE FACTORS

 

In its natural habitat the absolute maximum shade temperature varies from 37.5–47.5 C and the absolute minimum from 0–15 C. It does well in moist regions, with a mean annual rainfall exceeding 1000 mm. The mean relative humidity in July varies from 70–90% and in January from 50–80 %.

TOPOGRAPHY

 

It is commonly found in the hills at elevations ranging from 600 – 1800 m.  Red loamy soil very much suited, treat the black soil with red soil and FYM before planting 

 

CULTIVATION

 

The rooted saplings are planted onset of the monsoon or during the monsoon.  The suggested pit size is 2’ x 2’- 0.60m Cube.

Spacing of 3.5 m x 3.5 m is recommended. This will give better girth in shorter duration.

Seed Treatment

Seeds are collected from ripened fruits (Jan – Feb) by rubbing, washing and drying and are stored in sealed tins. The germinability of the seed is less than 25%. In nursery, the seeds are sown in raised nursery beds. The best seed treatment is treating the seeds with slurry for one day. Then the treated seeds are sown over the raised nursery bed. It takes one or two months for the seeds to germinate. Irrigation should be done regularly. The seedling takes 6 months to complete its nursery stage.

Expenditure Details (Rs/Ha) (Year-2014)

2nd Year   Rs. 61,500.00

3rd Year  Rs. 61,500.00 

4th Year  Rs. 64,500.00 

5th Year  Rs. 66,500.00 

6th Year  Rs. 66,500.00 

7th Year  Rs. 68,500.00 

8th Year  Rs. 68,500.00 

9th Year  Rs. 64,500.00

10th Year  Rs. 64,500.00 

11th Year  Rs. 66,500.00

Total:  6,53,000 + 1,14,000 = 7,67,000.00

Income Details (Rs/Ha) (Year-2014)

In a Hectare, we can plant 756 trees

at a spacing of 12 x 12 ft

Rs. 7,000 per tree this would amount to a total return of Rs.45,50,000 per Hectare gross income in 10-12 years (deduct 14%  on trees and value per tree)

To a farmer this amounts to a remuneration of approximately Rs.37,900 per month gross income

Additional income can be generated from inter-cropping

Melia dubia protection measures

Red spider mite: Presence of chlorotic spots which coleasce into pale patches indicated the presence of infestation. These critters can damage plants by sucking on the tissues, mainly in the leaves. The mites often cluster on the undersides of the leaves.

Bormia variegate or Baculovirus caterpillar: The larvae consumes the entire green tissues of leaf, leaving only the mid vein and some basal portion of leaf. It is more in May-July and Oct-Dec season.

They occurs in two colour forms, green with dark lines or pale yellowish brown and has a full size of 2.0 to 2.5 inches. The larvae consumes the leaf completely leaving the mid vein and some basal portion of leaf. The larval attack on the plant was in peak during June to October. During 2011. Screening of viral infected larvae was used for isolating baculovirus at Rain Forest Research Institute, Jorhat


Use Manjastra or Guruastra solution to prevent infestation. See my blog for preparation of Manjastra and Guruastra.

Preparation of GURUASTRA

Preparation: GURUASTRA is an effective and less-cost organic liquid fertiliser. The making of FAA is a easiest and eco-friendly process. It needs Fish and Solid Jaggery. Do not use liquid type of Jaggery for this, use only Solid. GURUASTRA has been developed by an organic expert Shri Manjunath Honnappanavar (Holalu) with multiple benefit of flower inducer, micro-nutrients and traces

Take recommended quantity of Fish, Tomato, Tender Coconut water and Jaggery, for example for 1 KG Fish, 1 KG of Tomato, 1 Lit of Tender Coconut water and 3 KG Jaggery, use small type fish.

Slice solid Jaggery, cut the fish into small pieces, crush the Tomato with tender coconut water. Take an air tight plastic Jar/Bottle and the put the mixture in it. Mix This well and store in a cool dry place. Keep it away from direct sun light. You need to keep this for 30 days. Then filter the waste and remove it, Take the liquid portion and save It. You need to keep this upto 6 Months

Application: Apply this to soil or to the leaves of the plant. Do not directly apply this, You need to dilute this, 2-5 ml of the fish amino acid can use with 1 litre water. Application of Guruastra on plant/leaves has many benefits then the drenching.

How it works: Guruastra is suited as a foliar application for boosting crops from early to late stages of maturity. Trace elements, minerals and complex organic compounds are absorbed into the plant’s leaf surface and are rapidly translocated to the roots. Foliar absorption is immediate. Increased brix (sugar/mineral) levels can be measured within 20 minutes. Residues left on the leaf surface help suppress insect and fungal attack by encouraging fungal bacteria and reducing insects leaf palatability - most pest insects dislike plants with higher brix levels.

Preparation of Chemical free Plant growth Hormone at low cost by using local resources (MANJASTRA)

Normally, many farmers used chemical based plant growth hormone in production of food, in fact many agricultural scientist recommend chemical base plant growth hormone in cultivation practices. Using chemical base hormone has many implication on health, ecology and also high cost for farmers.

After knowing the problems we recommend following recipe to make plant growth hormone by using local resources (MANJATRA)

MANJASTRA has been developed by an organic expert Shri. MANJUNATH HONNAPPANAVAR (HOLALU) with combination of micro-nutrients, repellents, amino-acids and traces

Egg        - 12
Jaggery - 3 Kg or Honey - 2 Kg
Banana  - 12
Red Onion    - 1 Kg
Water    - 5 litres

Slice and crush the above materials, add all the materials in to non-metal container for minimum of three days. Keep rotate minimum of two times in a day to remove the excess gas.

Sieve the material with doubled folded cloth, make sure that all solid matters should not go into solution. Mix the mother solution with 200 litres of water and spray on any crops  

For better result of MANJASTRA: 1st spray on blossom, 2nd spray on seed formation and 3rd spray on 30 to 60 before harvest.

Economics: Rs. 150/- per barrel, 4-8 barrel is sufficient for one acre of crop, 3 times spray, so totally 12-24 barrel per acre of crop, total expenditure is Rs.1800 -3600/-

Yield increment: 15-22% increment in overall

Five million return in an one of land

In an one acre of land with proper irrigation facility will get half a crore rupees in span of two half year. Initial invest of Rs. 4 million and first return starts in two half years, there after every will get returns.

Feature of project

Control systems with poly house or shade net
Selected pepper variety
Vertical pole system
Minimum pesticide use (as per organic certification)
Additional income of Rs. 1.5 million with tree crops after ten year

Contact:9480330652 or 9110449755

manjubaduku@gmail.com

NATIONAL » KARNATAKA

Published: December 24, 2015 16:35 IST | Updated: December 24, 2015 16:35 IST  RAICHUR, December 24, 2015

Govt. has to look into Bt cotton crop failure in Raichur: Experts

• Kumar Buradikatti

Independent team of cotton experts examining a Bt cotton field destroyed by pink bollworm at Gonal village near Raichur on Thursday. - PHOTO: SANTOSH SAGAR

The team of independent researchers said around 80 per cent of the Bt cotton crop was destroyed due to pink bollworm attack.

Following media reports on Bt cotton failure, an independent fact-finding team of experts visited Bt cotton fields in Raichur district on Thursday. The team visited fields in Gonal and Kadagamdoddi villages and interacted with the affected farmers.

In Gonal village, affected farmers were found desperately seeking suggestions and recommendations from the team members about alternative cotton seeds for cultivation. “We have suffered a massive blow with the failure of Bt cotton. We want some other varieties that could withstand pest attack and fetch better yield,” a farmer pleaded.

Speaking to media at a Bt cotton field in Gonal, about 15 kms from Raichur, Dr. Prakash, who headed the team, said that around 80 per cent of the Bt cotton crop was destroyed due to pink bollworm attack.

“A study report released from University of Agricultural Sciences in Raichur pointed out that around 40-50 per cent of Bt cotton crop in rain-fed area was destroyed in pink bollworm attack. We however found that the damage was over 80 per cent. The university should conduct fresh study and submit a report to government seeking appropriate actions for safeguarding the interests of affected farmers,” he said.

 Mr. Manjunath Holalu, another team member, pointed out that both Raichur and Dharwad agriculture universities had, in their Package of Practices reports recommended Bt cotton cultivation for rain-fed areas which goes against the recommendations of Central Institute for Cotton Research.

He also pointed out that Bollguard II variety of Bt cotton seeds, which was developed for controlling pink bollworm, had utterly failed.

“The instruction guide supplied with Bt cotton seed packet claims that it controls not only American, Spotted and Pink bollworms, but also highly effective against Spodoptera and Semi-loopers. But in reality it failed to control pink bollworm,” he observed. He showed the empty Bt cotton seed packets and the instructional manuals that he collected from farmers.

P. Srinivas Vasu, a team member, demanded the government hold Bt cotton seed companies responsible for the loss and compel them to pay compensation to affected farmers.

The team was comprised of Dr. H.R. Prakash, Agronomist and Rtd Additional Director, Department of Agriculture, Mr. Manjunath Holalu, Forestry and Environmentalist, P. Srinivas Vasu, ActionAid representative, Venkatesh Patel, a farmer, Syed Hafeez Ulha, convenor of Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti, Lakshman Gwoda, representative of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and others.

Lessons in integrated farming

Organic cultivation was not a choice for us, but a compulsion.” Brothers Veerappa and Rudrappa, from Vithalapura village in Tarikere taluk, who are now well known as organic farmers, share the circumstances that led them to achieve success in organic farming. “We were not financially sound and could not afford to buy chemical inputs.” 

Veerappa and Rudrappa took to farming at a very early age due the untimely demise of their father. They had to cross many hurdles and even work at others’ farms to understand the basics of farming. Compulsion turned into a passion as organic movement picked up in the State.  They visited many organic farmers including Dummalli Shivamma and D R Prafullachandra. Such exposure visits helped them get a clear picture of the intricacies of organic farming. In the process, they realised that soil nourishment is key to healthy crops. 

To ensure proper soil nutrition, they set up vermicomposting and biodigester units. They have raised about 12 cows of different native breeds like Gir, Kankrej, Hallikar, Amrutamahal and Malenad Gidda. Congo signal grass, grown on the bunds of the farm, is fed to the cattle. This grass variety, which grows even on infertile soil and doesn’t need water or manure, meets a major portion of the fodder requirement. They also feed nutritious food made or mixed at home to the cattle. Ajola, grown in ponds in the farm also serves as fodder to the cattle.  Two Gir cows yield 10 litres of milk. 

When Veerappa and Rudrappa realised that the production cost crosses the income generated by selling milk, they decided to make ghee. It has proved effective, and now they sell ghee at Rs 1,500 per kg. Cow urine is used in the preparation of biopesticide. Cow dung is used in gobargas, biodigester and vermicompost units. 

The water level in the farm is very low and a borewell is the sole source of water. Though drip irrigation is followed to supply water, they have realised that the system is not of much help in the rocky terrain of the farm. Still, they are able to maintain the moisture with the help of water harvesting structures like bunds and trenches. 

They grow a major portion of the household needs — from vegetables to fruits, grains and pulses — in the farm. Thus, along with areca nut, cocoa, coconut, banana, pepper and nutmeg they also cultivate fruit crops, grains and pulses. Forest species like teak, bamboo and hebbevu add to the biodiversity of the farm. The annual income from the farm is about 
Rs 12 lakh. 

Multiple cropping and integrated farming methods have helped them reap rich benefits with minimum investment. For example, nutmeg, cocoa and pepper are grown in the arecanut patch. Through their efforts and experiments, Veerappa and Rudrappa have realised that the secret of a successful farm reflects in the health of the soil, which gradually leads to good yield.

D M Ghanashyam Dec 15, 2015 in Prajavani

From Here & There-Vermicomposting for soil health

Shivananda G Ramagiri, an organic farmer in Mugali village of Haveri district, has maintained the fertility of his farmland by following simple principles. He mixes 100 kg of farm yard manure or vermicompost with trichoderma, mychorihza and pseudomonas (one kg each). He covers the mixture with paddy or finger millet straw, and sprays around 10 litres of water on it every day, for three days. This compost mixture is used as a base dose while sowing seeds or planting saplings.

He does vermicomposting on a large scale. In fact, the vermicomposting unit is the major source of manure for his 30 acres farm. The unit has around 18 pits of 10 X 3 X 2.5 feet size each. Agriculture bio-waste and biogas slurry are the major inputs for vermicomposting . The unit produces about 40-45 tonnes of vermicompost annually. Legumes also help him maintain the soil health.

He practices mixed cropping and does crop rotation to maintain the fertility of the soil. He grows ground nut or soybean in the kharif season, and sorghum in the rabi season. In another patch of land, he cultivates a local cotton variety and chilli in kharif while he grows cowpea in the rabi season. Rotation of monocot and dicot crops help him maintain a balance in the productivity of the farm. “Crop rotation, mixed cropping and farm-based organic manure are keys to my success in farming. It’s time farmers look at local, sustainable solutions than depending on outside input,” says Shivananda.  

Building healthy nation through healthy soil

--------------------------------------------------------------------Degradation of agricultural land, un-sustainable use of water, irresponsible uses of toxic chemicals and energy intensive production systems are all leading to loss of soil health as well as climate change disaster. The need for environmentally sound systems to ensure soil health management

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“Soil is life; Soil is work; and we are baseless without soil”, this was said by great saint and philosopher Sri Purandharadasa in his one of the devotional songs. “A nation that destroys its soil destroys itself” said by another philosopher Franklin D Roosevelt. Those lines indicate the importance of soil for our future of life. Soil is also one of the major ingredients in Naturopathy and Ayurveda treatment. The top soil determines the crop productivity and well being of the people. The Organic matter, Decomposers, Oxygen, Sunlight and Nutrient recycled microbes are very much important in maintaining the Soil life cycle. If human died goes in to the soil but soil died? This is a very philosophical question, but we all need to get the solution through proper soil health management.

The 95% of our food comes from soil and remaining is from water. Over 90 per cent of the planet's genetic biodiversity is said to be found in soils. By some estimates, a gram of soil can contain as many as 10,000 different species. Of the millions of life forms that inhabit the soil, some like earthworms are visible to the naked eye. A majority of the soil fauna, however, are microscopic. Even though we know little of their presence, each plays a crucial role ensuring soil building. Living and healthy soil is the very foundation of agriculture and thus an agro-economy like India. Healthy soils support millions of life forms, making it an ecosystem in itself - providing a healthy medium for crops to take root and enabling a steady supply of nutrients. Government policies have heavily subsidized on chemical fertilizers, which has catalyzed the indiscriminate use of these fertilizers. Moreover, the complete neglect of ecological or organic fertilization, especially during the peak Green Revolution period is the root cause of the present soil health crisis.

Living organisms in the soil play a crucial role in maintaining healthy, fertile soils, thus ensuring productivity over the long run. Government policies, however, have focused on investments and research practices on controlling these rather than maintaining living organisms that are beneficial to the soil. Healthy soil nurtures and nourishes plants. Biological productivity, capacity to regulate water flow, storing and recycling nutrients, filtering, buffering and transforming organic and inorganic materials are all  functions of healthy soils. Moreover, healthy soils serve as a genetic reserve for a multitude of life forms. If we are to ensure healthy soils, through organic methods that will optimize on multiple soil health functions

Building soil health through Vermi composting

Shivananda G Ramagiri, a 55 year old organic farmer from Mugali village of Shiggaon taluk of Haveri District in Karnataka. Generally speaking, managing Black Cotton (BC) soil health is little difficult, but he has done with simple following principles.

He takes 100kg of farm yard manure or Vermi Compost (VC) and mix with one kilo of each Trichoderma, Mychorihza and Pseudomonas under the shade condition. Mix the all four ingredient and cover with paddy or finger millet straw, and add around 10 liters of water on it for three days continuously. It has been used while sowing or while planting in the pit as a basal dose.

He has done big scale VC production unit in his backyard with proper shed. This VC unit is the instrumental catalyst to maintain his all 30 acres farm land. There are around 18 pits of 10 X 3 X 2.5ft sizes. He is able to harvest around 40 to 45 tons of VC every year by using agriculture bio-waste and biogas slurry from his own farm.

Mainly he cultivates soil binding crops every year in his entire land. He takes ground nut or Soybean in the Kharif season, and then he cultivates Muguthi sorghum in the Rabi season as rotation crop. In other piece of land, he takes Sahana Desi cotton with chilly in the Kharif season, and then he cultivates cowpea in the Rabi season. He always maintain legume versus cereals on rotation basis.

Building soil through Jeevambrutha coated farm yard manure

C D Patil, a 75 year old organic farmer from Kankanawada village of Shiggaon taluk of Haveri District in Karnataka. He is practicing four simple principles to maintain soil health. He always produce Jeevambrutha coated farm yard manure (FYM) for entire his land. He spreads the three feet height half decomposed FYM under the shade in his land. He puts ready Jeevambrutha on the spread FYM for two times in 30 days time. It will be ready after 30 days and he used treated FYM while sowing to all crops.

He always treats the seed with Beejambrutha while sowing for all kinds of seeds, especially Sorghum, Cotton, Ground nut, Banana, Green gram and Soybean.

He applies Jeevambrutha and Neem cake for all kind of crops. Another last principle is cultivating back entire crop after harvest with rotavotar machine to increase organic matters in the soil.

Building soil health through legume culture practice

A N Anjaneya (37), is a young organic farmer started legume culture practice (Incorporating Green manure crops matters before sowing main crops) in his four acres of saline affected paddy area in Kumbaluru village of Harihara Taluk of Davanagere district in Karnataka, It was implemented during 2009 with support from department of agriculture. Legume culture practice has improved over the period of years in Kumbaluru village, the extent of legume culture system was increased 40 acres in 2010; and then increase to 150 acres in 2011; 400 acres in 2012; 600 acres in 2013 and finally increased to 1,200 acres in 2014. Now, paddy growers in the village are demanding for 12,000 acres in the upcoming year. The balaga team members are mainly used green manure seeds such as Sunhemp, Velvet beans, Diayancha and Pilpesaru in their legume culture method. The entire work has been implemented and monitored by Sarana Muddanna Savayava Krushikara Balaga (It is a registered organic farmer’s society) and monitory support by district agriculture department.

The main impacts of the legume culture practice are; the cost of production reduced up to 20pc, Enhance the land fertility due to increase in the soil carbon, incidence of pest and disease decreased, Quantum of chemical fertilizer decreased and last but not the least quality of health improved a lot over the period of 5 years said by A N Anjaneya and his team members.

We all should encourage eco friendly soil building process with deep intention of manages soil health without using chemicals. At lost physical, chemical and biological properties of top soil